Research data management practices of chemistry researchers in federal universities of technology in Nigeria

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this study was to understand the research data management practices of chemistry researchers in the five specialized federal universities of technology in Nigeria. Appropriate research data management practice ensures that research data are available for reuse by secondary users, and research findings can be verified and replicated within the scientific community. A poor research data management practice can lead to irrecoverable data loss, unavailability of data to support research findings and lack of trust in the research process. Design/methodology/approach An exploratory research technique involving semi-structured, oral and face-to-face interview is used to gather data on research data management practices of chemistry researchers in Nigeria. Interview questions were divided into four major sections covering chemistry researchers’ understanding of research data, experience with data loss, data storage method and backup techniques, data protection, data preservation and availability of data management plan. Braun and Clarke thematic analysis approach was adapted, and the Provalis Qualitative Data Miner (version 5) software was used for generating themes and subthemes from the coding framework and for presenting the findings. Findings Findings revealed that chemistry researchers in Nigeria have a good understanding of the concept of research data and its importance to research findings. Chemistry researchers have had several experiences of irrecoverable loss of data because of poor choice of storage devices, back-up methods and weak data protection systems. Even though the library was agreed as the most preferred place for long-term data preservation, there is the issue of trust and fear of loss of ownership of data to unauthorized persons or party. No formal data management plan is used while conducting their scientific research. Research limitations/implications The research focused on research data management practices of chemistry researchers in the five specialized federal universities of technology in Nigeria. Although the findings of the study are similar to perceptions and practices of researchers around the world, it cannot be used as a basis for generalization across other scientific disciplines. Practical implications This study concluded that chemistry researchers need further orientation and continuous education on the importance and benefits of appropriate research data management practice. The library should also roll out research data management programs to guide researchers and improve their confidence throughout the research process. Social implications Appropriate research data management practice not only ensures that the underlying research data are true and available for reuse and re-validation, but it also encourages data sharing among researchers. Data sharing will help to ensure better collaboration among researchers and increased visibility of the datasets and data owners through the use of standard data citations and acknowledgements. Originality/value This is a qualitative and in-depth study of research data management practices and perceptions among researchers in a particular scientific field of study.

Research data management practices of faculty members in Ghanaian universities

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Research Data Preservation Practices of Library and Information Science Faculties

“…Abduldayan, et al 27 (2020) examined the RDM practice among chemistry researchers in Nigeria, using exploratory research techniques. The result declares that researchers have a good understanding of the meaning of RDM, files, types of data, data analysis software and purposes of research data but have a poor experience with data storage, recovery of data and weak data protection.…”

Using current research information systems to investigate data acquisition and data sharing practices of computer scientists

“…Interview studies conducted within the fields of engineering research suggests that the institutional contexts are important for data sharing. The findings suggest that institutional rules, services and attitudes mediate the engagement in data sharing practices within engineering research (Mallasvik and Martins, 2020: 589;Abduldayan et al, 2021).…”

“…Data interviews (e.g. Abduldayan et al, 2021; Mallasvik and Martins, 2020; Poole and Garwood, 2020; Suhr et al, 2020) have also been a common method for acquiring insight into researchers’ data sharing. Although the interview methodology has also been valuable in understanding, for example, researchers’ motivations and barriers to data sharing, inferring a holistic picture about a research organisation may be difficult based on sample interviews alone.…”